NORMAN — It hasn't necessarily been the ideal tenure for JJ Hester since he arrived at Oklahoma.

The Tulsa native was seen as a huge acquisition in the transfer portal back in 2022 after showing flashes at Missouri. But Hester's Sooner career was derailed before it even started — he broke his foot three games into his first season, then suffered another broken foot that kept him out of the first eight games of last season.

It was a discouraging first two seasons for Hester, who acknowledged that it's been a struggle to continue fighting through it.

“It took a toll on me, definitely, just the mental side of it," Hester said. "Just coming in here, wanting to help the offense play and then getting injured, that was definitely unexpected. I just stayed close with family, friends and kept God close, and I was able to battle back and come back.”

Hester recovered just enough to play a few snaps in the last five games of the season, but didn't feel fully healthy until the end of the spring. That has kept up through the summer and the first few practices of fall camp.

One teammate that helped him through it was Andrel Anthony, who suffered his own significant injury midway through last season.

"Me and Andrel bonded during our injuries," Hester said. "I was in the weight room, he was in the weight room. I was in the training room, he was in the training room. We definitely bonded, and anybody else who was injured in the past. We definitely bonded and shared our stories to get back."

It's taken a couple of years, but now there's potential for Hester to make an impact.

The Sooners sport one of the deepest wide receiver groups in the SEC, and heading into the season it was unclear if Hester would be able to stand out in a room with Nic Anderson Jalil Farooq, Jayden Gibson and Anthony as viable candidates for playing time on the outside.

But with Gibson suffering a season-ending injury last week, there's a real pathway to playing time for Hester. At 6-foot-4 he offers similar size to Gibson and could potentially pose matchup problems on the perimeter, particularly down the field.

Even without Gibson's injury, the fifth-year receiver had made an argument for playing time through the first 10 practices of fall camp.

"The only thing that’s held JJ back is some injuries in his past," OU coach Brent Venables said. "He’s fought through that.. He had a broken foot twice, just back to back and he’s been fantastic. He’s long, he’s really fast, he’s got a tremendous catch radius, he plays tough, blocks well and then he’s an excellent special teams player. So his growth and development — other than the injuries — is exactly what we thought we could potentially get out of him. So he’s going to have a real role for us.”

Hester's injuries have left him as an often-forgotten player in OU's wide receivers corps, but the former 2020 three-star prospect has always had potential. Hester was the fifth-highest ranked recruit in Oklahoma, and he caught 12 passes for 225 yards (18.8 yards per reception) for two touchdowns in his second season at Missouri.

When he's healthy, Hester has shown his speed against opposing defenders.

"I’ve seen that ‘918 JJ’ that I’ve known since high school," OU safety Robert Spears-Jennings said. "He is showing himself and back into his groove and showing everybody why he should be fighting for that starting spot."

But if Hester has learned anything through his injuries, it's been focusing on fulfilling a role for the offense. Hester has developed a chemistry with starting quarterback Jackson Arnold particularly down the field, and he knows that's an asset he could bring to the Sooners this season.

"Whatever I need to do, just do for the offense," Hester said. "If I need to go here, go there, it doesn’t matter. I’m willing to do anything for the offense.”

After a couple of tough seasons for Hester, he's finally feeling healthy and has a real chance to see playing time this season. Now, it's about sticking with it.

“I’m looking forward to making a big impact," Hester said. "... It took me a while to get back to this, but overall it’s been going great, and I’m just blessed to get back on the field.”

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